Rock History July 24
1965, The Byrds were at number one on the UK singles chart with their version of the Bob Dylan song “Mr Tambourine Man.” It was the first Bob Dylan song to reach the top of the charts. Across the Atlantic, “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” by The Rolling Stones began the third of it’s four week run at number one.
1966, The Who played at Brittania Pier in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England.
1967, All four Beatles and their manager Brian Epstein signed a petition printed in The Times newspaper calling for the legalization of marijuana.
1967, Pink Floyd appeared at The Maryland Ballroom in Glasgow, Scotland.
1967, The Beatles meet Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. The band had gone to hear a lecture on Transcendental Meditation (TM) at the Hilton Hotel in London. TM involved the silent repetition of a word or sound to produce a state of mind that reduces stress, calms the mind, and energizes both mind and body. The Maharishi invited The Beatles to travel with him to Bangor, in North Wales, to attend more lectures. They accepted his invitation.
1968, Pink Floyd, along with Friends of the Family, play at the Philadelphia Music Festival, held a JFK Stadium. The Who, The Troggs, and The Mandala were unable to perform as a lightning strike hit the set just as The Mandala were to take the stage, forcing the cancellation of the rest of the event.
1969, Free and Jethro Tull performed at Boston Tea Party in Boston.
1969, Pink Floyd appeared at Nederland 1 TV Studios in Zaandam, The Netherlands for the last of three European TV appearances. This performance was for the program Apollo 11.
1969, Paul McCartney recorded a demo of his new song “Come and Get It” at Abbey Road studios in London. McCartney gave the song to The Iveys, (soon to become known as Badfinger). The song was later used as the theme for the movie The Magic Christian.
1969, The Beatles recorded “Sun King/Mean Mr. Mustard” for their forthcoming Abbey Road album. The working title of “Sun King” was “Here Comes the Sun King,” but the title was changed due to the similarity to George’s “Here Comes the Sun.”
1970, Iggy & the Stooges performed at the Uptown Palladium 12 Theatre in Birmingham, Michigan.
1971, Paul Revere and the Raiders went to number one on the singles chart with “Indian Reservation.”
1971, The Allman Brothers Band performed at Superball Fest, held at Midway Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota.
1971, The number one record in the UK is T. Rex’s “Get It On.”
1971, Queen appeared at the Young Farmers Club, Wadebridge, England.
1972, Bobby Ramirez, drummer with Edger Winters White Trash, was killed after becoming involved in a brawl in a Chicago bar. The fight started after comments were made about the length of his hair.
1973, Led Zeppelin performed at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The band drew 40,000 fans in attendance, earning a reported $120,000 for the show. The band’s film crew capture some footage of the event, in preparation for the three night finale at Madison Square Garden.
1974, George McCrae was at number one on the singles chart with “Rock Your Baby.” Written and produced by Harry Wayne Casey and Richard Finch of KC and the Sunshine Band. Regarded by some as the first disco number one
1975, Aerosmith appeared at the Sam Houston Coliseum, Houston, Texas.
1976, The Beach Boys 20 Golden Greats album started a ten-week run at number one on the album chart.
1976, Aerosmith played at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, Canada.
1976, Elton John scored his first number 1 single with “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,” a duet with Kiki Dee. It was written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin under the pseudonym “Ann Orson” and “Carte Blanche” and was Elton’s first number one after 16 Top 40 hits. John had met Dee when she was working as a backup singer. John would later re-record the song with RuPaul for his 1993 Duets album.
1976, Yes performed at Spokane Arena, Spokane, Washington.
1977, Donna Summer was at number one on the UK singles chart with the Giorgio Moroder produced “I Feel Love.” The disco diva’s only UK chart topper.
1978, The Robert Stigwood film Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, was released, featuring The Bee Gees and Peter Frampton. The film received extremely negative reviews from most critics, and barely broke even at the box office.
1979, Van Halen played at the Civic Center, St. Paul, Minnesota.
1980, Blue Oyster Cult performed at the Convention Center Rotunda, Las Vegas.
1981, ZZ Top appeared at the Seattle Center Coliseum, Seattle, Washington.
1982, Survivor started a six week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Eye Of The Tiger,” taken from the film Rocky III. Also a chart topper in the UK. Survivor won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance for the song.
1993, U2 started a two-week run at number one on the US album chart with Zooropa the Irish band’s fourth US chart topper. Zooropa won a Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album in 1994.
1993, UB40 started a seven week run at number one on the US singles chart with “Can’t Help Falling In Love.” Elvis Presley had the first hit with the song, in 1961, Corey Hart was next up with a top 30 hit in 1987, and Hall and Oates recorded the song for 1990’s, The Last Temptation of Elvis charity album. UB40 originally covered the song for the Honeymoon in Vegas soundtrack, but Bono’s version was chosen instead. Also on the same day UB40 went to number one on the UK album chart with Promises And Lies.
1994, The Grateful Dead performed at Soldier Field in Chicago. Traffic was the opening act.
2003, Ozzy Osbournes long-standing tour manager, Bobby Thompson, was found dead in his Detroit hotel room. Thompson had been battling throat cancer.
2011, Former Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant joined three local musicians at a fundraising charity show in Monmouth Wales, where tickets cost £3. The event was a tribute to his friend, former Led Zeppelin producer Pat Moran, who died of a rare dementia in January. Plant delighted the small crowd in the Monmouthshire town with songs from his Led Zeppelin days as well as tunes from his solo career.
Born on July 24: Heinz Burt, bass, The Tornadoes (1942); Jim Armstrong, The Them (1944); Steve Goodman (1948); Paul Geary, American singer, drummer, manager, Extreme (1961)
Get more Today in Rock History
Aerosmith, Badfinger, Blue Oyster Cult, Donna Summer, Elton John, Free, Jethro Tull, Led Zeppelin, Paul Revere & The Raiders, Pink Floyd, Queen, T Rex, The Allman Brothers Band, The Beach Boys, The Beatles, The Byrds, The Grateful Dead, The Who, U2, UB40, Van Halen, Yes.
